Upcoming event: Rushing for gold – the impacts of NZ’s proposed fast-track Bendigo mine
Event details
Date: Wednesday 23rd July, 2025
Time: 7:30pm, NZT
Location: online only
Zoom link: https://aut.zoom.us/j/
Abstract
Australian company Santana Minerals Limited has sought approval under the Fast-Track Approvals Act 2024 to establish a huge open-cast gold mine in the Dunstan Mountains near Bendigo in the Clutha Basin. Santana Minerals claims its prospect to be potentially the most lucrative New Zealand discovery in forty years, yet opponents say, if consented, the mine will come at a staggering cost to the region. Two hundred million tons of waste rock and 13 million tons of toxic tailings are forecast, with wholesale stripping of the existing, largely indigenous landcover is to commence as soon as Q1 2026. The site is in a highly visible natural environment presently designated as an Outstanding Natural Landscape in the Central Otago District Plan and covered by a conservation covenant.
Rob van der Mark will give a presentation on the Santana plans for an open cast gold mine in the Dunstan ranges, including the anticipated impacts and areas of concern.
About the speaker
Rob ver der Mark emigrated to NZ from The Netherlands at age 18 and completed a BSc from The University of Auckland in Biochemistry and Cell Biology. After a 25 year overseas career in the pharmaceutical and medical technology industries, Rob and his wife returned to NZ in 2014 to plant and work their vineyard in Bendigo, some 10 km from the proposed mine site. Since then they have become active protectionists of the spectacular and unique landscapes and natural environment in the area and are both members of Sustainable Tarras.
Photo shows Mt Pisa and its reflection on Clutha River/Mata-Au (Lake Dunstan) by Stacie Ong on Unsplash.
